Keep Eyes on Our Climate Goal, Says Environment Commissioner

The Parliamentary Commissioner
for the Environment has today supported moves to strengthen
New Zealand’s climate rules, but has highlighted the need
to focus on the end goal.

“In November in Paris,
global leaders agreed that the world must essentially stop
emitting greenhouse gases this century,” said Dr Wright.
“Here in New Zealand we need to work out how we are going
to make a smooth transition to a low-carbon economy.”

The Commissioner has today provided advice to Parliament
in a submission on the Government’s review of the
Emissions Trading Scheme.

“I am pleased that the
Government is currently reviewing our climate policy,
especially in the wake of the successful international
agreement in Paris a few months ago.”

The review
is focused on a number of technical matters, but the
Commissioner has called for more work to address key
questions that need to be answered if our climate policies
are to be effective.

“We need to know what the
opportunities and risks are for our different industries in
a carbon-constrained world. This includes the agriculture
sector.”

Dr Wright restated her view that the
Emissions Trading Scheme as the right framework for New
Zealand, but thus far has been little more than a
framework.

“I welcome these moves to strengthen
it. The removal of the two-for-one subsidy is critical for
the effectiveness of the ETS,” she said.

The
Commissioner plans to provide further advice on the ETS
review in April and is currently investigating the complex
topic of the agricultural greenhouse gases.

Scoop Citizen Members and ScoopPro Organisations are the lifeblood of Scoop.

20 years of independent publishing is a milestone, but your support is essential to keep Scoop thriving. We are building on our offering with new In-depth Engaged Journalism platform - thedig.nz.
Find out more and join us:

The focus of Labour’s alleged sexual assault scandal has now shifted from the party organisation to the Beehive... This is now a crisis of Beehive management and response, not something occurring at a distance within the party organisation.

Presumably, the QC appointed to clarify what happened will eventually shed light on key issues. Such as: on what date prior to the publication of the original Spinoff article did the party hierarchy/PM’s office/PM’s press secretary realise they were dealing with a sexual assault allegation, and what did they do about it at that point? More>>

ALSO:

An official pardon for Tūhoe prophet and leader Rua Kēnana is one step closer after the Te Pire kia Unuhia te Hara kai Runga i a Rua Kēnana: Rua Kēnana Pardon Bill was read in Parliament for the first time today. More>>

“We have listened carefully to the growing calls from New Zealanders to know more about our own history and identity. With this in mind it makes sense for the National Curriculum to make clear the expectation that our history is part of the local curriculum and marau ā kura in every school and kura,” Jacinda Ardern said. More>>

Jacinda Ardern: “This morning I was provided some of the correspondence from complainants written to the party several months ago. It confirms that the allegations made were extremely serious, that the process caused complainants additional distress, and that ultimately, in my view, the party was never equipped to appropriately deal with the issue…" More>>

A recent trip to China has raised questions over who the Opposition leader Simon Bridges met with and why... Anne-Marie Brady, a Canterbury University professor and expert on Chinese politics, has described Guo Shengkun as the leader of the Chinese secret police. More>>

Torture is a crime under international law. New Zealand has signed (a) the UN convention against torture and (b) formal agreements about how armed conflict should be conducted. That’s the legal backdrop to the fascinating report released this week by the SIS Inspector-General.